The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for monitoring traffic states around a vehicle by using picture information picked up by a picture pickup device, and further to an operation support system using the method and the apparatus.
Methods or apparatuses for maintaining a constant distance between a subject vehicle and a preceding vehicle or for operating the subject vehicle to follow a preceding vehicle by means of a picture processing technique using pictures of a front scene in the running direction, picked up by a picture pickup device, are described in Japanese Patent Applications Laid-Open No. 313200/1992, No. 172799/1983 and No. 291100/1990.
Since the above-mentioned techniques are based upon recognition of a preceding vehicle by using picture information, the techniques require processing of a large amount of picture information, and therefore, the implementation of such techniques requires a large capacity memory and an information processing device (computer) capable of superhigh speed calculation.
Further, the techniques have a problem in that they need more information processing time if a road is curved since it is necessary under such circumstances to process more picture information for following the preceding vehicle.